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SEC Temporarily Suspends Trading of UBI Blockchain Internet, Ltd. Over Questions as to Disclosure
BlogBlockchain and the Law

On Monday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) halted all trading in the stock of the Hong Kong-based firm, UBI Blockchain Internet, Ltd. (OTC ticker UBIA). “The commission is of the opinion that the public interest and the protection of investors require a suspension of trading in the securities of the above-listed company,” the SEC said in its order. Citing questions as to the accuracy of UBIA’s recent disclosures as well as “concerns about recent, unusual and unexplained market activity” in the company’s stock, the SEC has suspended all trades until January 22nd and cautioned any potential investors to carefully review UBIA’s prior, as well as any forthcoming, disclosures.

UBIA attributes its fluctuating stock price to the recent market-wide surge and heightened interest in investing in cryptocurrencies, rather than UBIA’s own actions. Tony Liu, the CEO of UBIA, noted that while the company does utilize Blockchain technology for a food product tracking system, it does not now, nor does it plan to, use that technology to create a cryptocurrency or “coin”. Last month UBIA filed with the SEC to release an additional 72.3 million shares owned by executives into the market, while its share price posted significant gains (sometimes spiking over 1,110%), potentially due to the cryptocurrency frenzy at the end of 2017, despite the company finishing the year with an operating loss of $1.83 million and no revenues.

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